Ms Razwana Afzal

CHAPTER – 01
URBANIZATION IN BANGLADESH

1.1 Introduction

Today Bangladesh is experiencing a rapid pace of urbanization. Although the level of urbanization is low (23.1%) the country already has got a huge urban population which is more than 28 million (Census, 2001). However after the independence of Bangladesh in 1971, urbanization and urban planning got little priority in the national policies and strategies of the country. Even at present, there is no proper policy guideline or regulations through which urbanization can be tackled. As a result, unplanned and haphazard growth is the common feature in most urban areas of the country and this situation is much more severe in metropolitan cities particularly in Dhaka. Such a situation resulted mainly due to inadequate attention given to urban planning and development. Being predominantly an agrarian country, rural and agricultural development in Bangladesh received priority in public allocations and management attention in the past. However, in the current situation it has been recognized that in spite of a declared national policy in favour of rural and agricultural development, ultimately much of the investments might well have flowed back to urban areas (Islam, 1990). The positive association of urbanization with industrialization and economic growth is well known in today’s world. Actually urbanization is an index or determinant of economic growth of the country. There has been a phenomenal increase in the level of urbanization and urban growth in Bangladesh for the last three decades. In 1974, the urban population was only 8.78% of the total population while this percentage increased to 23.1% in 2001 and it is estimated that 38.2% of the total population will live in urban areas in 2020 (Rouf, 1999).

Thus it would not be so easy for the policy makers and concerned authorities to handle such rapid pace of urbanization in the context of population and economic growth and physical development. Past experience shows unplanned, unregulated and haphazard urban development resulting in low living standards of urban dwellers which is mainly due to lack of proper planning and farsightedness of concerned authorities. In this situation, the urban areas of the country need to be shaped as economically vibrant, self reliant, livable, peaceful and environment friendly. In this respect the main challenges of the urban authorities should be to ensure planned and regulated urbanization and efficient management of urban areas by practicing effective urban planning policies and guidelines. In the following paragraphs an attempt has been made to provide a general discussion on urbanization along with the factors affecting the urbanization in developing country like Bangladesh. The positive impacts as well as the problems and other adverse effects that arise from the process of urbanization have also been discussed here with possible mitigation measures.

1.2 Definition of Urbanization

In brief, urbanization refers to increase of percentage of urban population with respect to total population. Basically, urbanization is a cause and effect in socio-economic development accompanied by the demographic and cultural changes that is an increasing function of urban population growth and increasing involvement of people in secondary and tertiary production activities. Urbanization is an unavoidable feature in the process of development and it occurs due to urban population growth of a city and town, which results from the net impact of natural increase or decrease and the net migration resulting from the balance between the total movements in and out of the urban areas.
Urbanization is not a discrete local process but it is a part of large societal coalescence and has both positive and negative implications on some aspects of national economy directly and indirectly. In case of developing countries, rural-urban migration is the dominating factor to the growth of urban centers which occurs due to attraction of employment facilities and job opportunities, improved health and medical services, educational and recreational facilities etc. of urban areas. On the other hand, declaration of new urban areas, as they meet the formal criteria where non-agricultural activities are prominent, is another important factor that contributes to the increase of urban areas.

1.3 Existing Situation of Urbanization

1.3.1 Urbanization in the World Context

The principal feature of urbanization, i.e. increase of urban population through in-migration adding to the natural growth, is observed to occur at different rates in different countries. The trend of urbanization in the developed along with the developing countries will be analyzed in this section.

During the post World War-II period, high rate of urbanization took place due to in-migration of large numbers of construction labor for reconstruction activities. Actually, before 1850, no country of the world was predominantly urban, and by 1920, only 14% of the world population was urbanized and by the year 2000 more than 50% of the world population became urbanized. The following Table 1.1 shows the world trend of urbanization.

Table 1.1: The Trend of World Urbanization

|Year |% Urban |Year |% Urban |
|1920 |14.30 |1960 |33.00 |
|1930 |16.30 |1970 |37.20 |
|1940 |18.30 |1980 |41.50 |
|1950 |25.40 |1990 |46.10 |
| | |2000 |51.10 |

Source: National Urbanization Policy in Developing Countries. A World Bank Research Publication, 1994.

1.3.2 Urbanization in the Context of Developing Countries

The overall picture of trend of urbanization is similar in most of the developing countries. The big cities in the developing countries are characterized by rapid urbanization. Kolkata and Delhi (India) are recently experiencing very fast urbanization, although urbanizing character is different in these two cities. Similarly, Bangkok, as capital of Thailand, is enjoying very rapid urbanization. In case of Colombo (Sri Lanka) more or less same picture is evident. However the authority of these cities are managing and providing urban facilities to the permanent inhabitants and also to new dwellers in a better way in comparison to Karachi (Pakistan) and Dhaka (Bangladesh).

Due to lack of planned development, these cities are facing a lot of problems which appear from the spontaneous growth of low income urban settlements, environmental pollution and traffic congestion. Jakarta (Indonesia) is also facing similar conditions. In case of China, they are planning and managing their cities in a better way as they have strict control over their planning and development activities. Asia’s demographic situation is dominated by five highly populated developing countries of the world i.e., China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Bangladesh (Afsar, 2000).

The developing countries of the world are undergoing huge urban expansion, whereas the process of concentration of people in urban areas has stabilized in most of the developed countries. The number of people living in the urban areas of the developed regions nearly doubled from 452 to 882.9 million and in the developing world it registered six times increase from 285 million to 1.7 billion over the last 45 years (1950-1995). 46 percent of the world’s urban population (nearly 1.2 billion persons) lived in Asia in 1995 (HABITAT, 1996). Demographic situation of five large developing countries i.e. China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Bangladesh (Afsar, 2000) is shown in Table 1.2.

Table 1.2: Size of Urban Population in Selected Asian Countries (1970-2015)

|Asia |Size of Urban Population (million) |
| |1970 |1990 |1995 |2015 |
| | | | |(Projected) |
|Bangladesh |5.07 |17.20 |21.63 |50.07 |
|China |144.53 |302.71 |368.72 |647.12 |
|India |109.61 |217.25 |248.87 |435.11 |
|Indonesia |20.53 |55.92 |69.94 |135.56 |
|Pakistan |16.35 |37.98 |46.73 |104.74 |
|Total of five countries |296.54 |626.12 |760.93 |1455.23 |
|Asian total |481.73 |974.26 |1197.97 |2158.56 |
|Share of five countries as percentage of the total urban |61.56 |64.27 |63.5 |67.4 |
|population of Asia | | | | |

Source: Dhaka Migration Survey, Task Force Report, Vol. 3, 1991.

According to the Table 1.2, the urban population of five leading developing countries is increasing very rapidly. In case of Bangladesh in 1970 it was only 5.07 million and in 1995 it increased to 21.65 million, in China in 1970 it was 144.53 million and in 1995, 386.72 million, in India in 1970, 109.61 million and in 1995, 248 million. In Indonesia in 1970, 20.53 million and in 1995 it increased to 69.94 million and similarly in Pakistan the urban population was only 16.35 million in 1970 and it increased to 46.73 million in 1995. This proves the general hypothesis that, the countries, which once had low level of urbanization, are experiencing rapid urban growth now and Bangladesh is one of them (Afsar, 2000).

1.3.3 Urbanization in Bangladesh

In the SAARC and ESCAP region, Bangladesh is one of the least urbanized countries (Islam, 2001). After its independence in the year 1971, it has been experiencing rapid urbanization and fast population growth.
Urban areas have been classified in the Census, 2001 by size of population as Mega City, Statistical Metropolitan Areas, Paurashavas and the Other Urban Areas that are Upazila headquarters and the development centers which have urban characteristics. There are at present one Mega City, three Statistical Metropolitan Areas and 290 Paurashavas in the country.

According to Population Census, 2001, 28 million people live in the urban areas which is 23.1% of the total population; in 1991 urban population constituted 19.34% of the total national population, and in 1981, it was only 15.7% of the total population of Bangladesh. From the picture of urbanization trend, it is evident that Bangladesh is experiencing a very rapid growth of urban population. The following Table 1.3 on intercensal growth rates of population by residence will give clear picture of nature and trend of urbanization in Bangladesh.

Table 1.3: Intercensal Growth Rates of Population by Residence, 1901-1991

|Census |National Population (000) |Growth Rate (%)|Urban Population (000) |Growth Rate (%) |% (Urban) |
|year | | | | | |
|1901 |28928 |- |702 |0.00 |2.40 |
|1911 |31555 |0.94 |807 |1.40 |2.60 |
|1921 |33254 |0.60 |878 |0.80 |2.60 |
|1931 |36501 |0.93 |1073 |2.00 |3.00 |
|1941 |41997 |1.70 |1537 |3.60 |3.70 |
|1951 |44166 |0.50 |1820 |1.70 |4.30 |
|1961 |55223 |2.26 |3111 |5.40 |5.60 |
|1971 |76398 |2.48 |7390 |6.70 |9.70 |
|1981 |89912 |2.32 |14089 |9.20 |15.70 |
|1991 |111455 |2.01 |21560 |4.20 |19.34 |
|2001 |130030 |1.54 |28610 |3.15 |23.1 |

Source: Population Census, 2001, National Report (Provisional).

Considering the trend of growth of urban population, the World Bank made an urban population projection for Bangladesh which forecasted that by the year 2015, the urban population will be 67.9 million. The Table 1.4 shows the projection made by the World Bank in 1995.

Table 1.4: Urban Population Projection in Bangladesh 1981-2015

|Year |Total Popn. (m) |Rural Popn. (m) |Urban Popn. (m) |Urban growth (% p.a.)|Level of urbanization (Share of urban|
| | | | | |Pop in %) |
|1981 |90.0 |76.5 |13.5 |10.3 |15.1 |
|1985 |100.6 |83.1 |17.5 |6.5 |17.4 |
|1990 |113.7 |90.8 |22.9 |5.4 |20.1 |
|1995 |126.8 |97.4 |29.4 |5.0 |23.2 |
|2000 |141.1 |103.8 |37.3 |4.8 |26.4 |
|2005 |155.8 |109.4 |46.4 |4.4 |29.8 |
|2010 |170.5 |113.7 |56.8 |4.0 |33.3 |
|2015 |184.6 |116.7 |67.9 |3.6 |36.8 |

Source: World Bank, Bangladesh Economic and Social Development prospects, Vol. III (Report # 5409) April 1995, p. 126.
Although there is little variation in between the projected figure and actual figure of census 2001, but it is predicted that on the basis of existing socio-economic condition of the country, the present trend of urbanization will be continued. The urban population in Bangladesh is not only growing in the big cities but substantial growth is also observed in other cities.

1.4 The Process of Urbanization in Bangladesh

There are several causes of rapid urbanization in Bangladesh of which the following could be considered as more important ones:

• The natural increase of population growth and re-definition of urban areas i.e. physical and spatial expansion, are major causes of rapid urban population growth.

• Poverty and poor economic conditions in the rural areas are also responsible for rapid growth of urbanization in Bangladesh.

• Although expected industrial development did not take place, but after the independence both the private and public investment have increased employment opportunities.

• The villagers have started to migrate in the urban areas specially in the big cities, like the capital city Dhaka, divisional cities Chittagong, Khulna, Rajshahi, and other urban areas for employment, better health care, higher education and other urban amenities.

• There is a regional variation in terms of employment opportunities, educational facilities and other opportunities due to which people migrate from one region to another region.

• Per capita agricultural land available in the rural areas of the country is not sufficient to earn livelihood, and the huge unabsorbed agricultural labor force are coming up to the urban areas for searching employment. Table 1.5 shows the components of population growth in major cities in Bangladesh from 1961-1991.

Table 1.5: Numerical Distribution of Population by Economic Category in Intercensal Years with Employed and Unemployed Labor Force in Bangladesh, 1961-1991
(million)
|Heads |Population (Both Sex) in million |
| |1961 |1974 |1981 |1991 |
|Total Population |2.6 |6.3 |13.2 |20.9 |
|Population below 10 years |0.8 |1.9 |3.7 |5.8 |
|Population below 10 years and above1.8 |1.8 |4.4 |9.5 |15.1 |
|Economically Active |0.9 |2.0 |4.1 |7.0 (10.9) |
|Civilian labor force |0.9 |2.0 |4.1 |6.7 (10.3) |
|a) Employed |0.9 |1.9 |4.1 |6.7 (10.6) |
|b) Unemployed |- |0.1 |- |0.3 (1.4) |
|Economically not active |0.9 |2.4 |5.5 |8.1 (4.9) |
|Not in civilian labor force | | | |0.3 (0.3) |
|a) Housewives/Household Work |0.5 |1.2 |2.7 |4.6 (4.8) |
|b) Inactive |0.4 |1.2 |2.8 |1.3 (1.3) |

Source: Population census, 1991, Urban Area Report, 1997.
From Table 1.5, it is observed that, the total population of the country has increased by 703.8% during the period of 1961-1991, while the employed persons have increased by 644.4%. These figures were 142.3% and 111.1% in 1974, 109.5% and 115.8% in 1981 and 85.3% and 63.4% in 1991 according to the census. Due to employment opportunities in urban sector, the surplus of labor force from the agricultural sector is adding to the urban sector and being illiterate and unskilled , they mostly get employment in the informal sectors like construction, transportation and only a few in government formal sectors. However unemployment and underemployment is also a common picture.

In Bangladesh, natural hazards like riverbank erosion, cyclone, tornadoes, tidal surges, droughts and floods are common scenario which have strong regional push factor that attracts people from rural to the urban areas. Better transportation linkage of urban centers with the rural areas is another positive factor for shifting people from rural to urban areas. For example, Dhaka, the capital city, is enjoying all the major pull advantages e.g. size, diversified economic and employment base, central location within the country and easy accessibility from all parts of the country. Mainly, the people from the poverty stricken districts of the north, south, and south-east regions of the country generally migrate to the capital city.

According to various surveys, landlessness and poverty, unemployment and economic crisis, lack of earning options, business, and environmental factors such as riverbank erosion and personal or family reasons i.e. loss of husband and family fund are the main causes of rural-urban migration.

Newly designated urban areas play an important role in urbanization. At the time of rapid urbanization, a huge number of low-income people build their houses outside the boundary of the towns and cities and when these areas are included as a part of the main city, total number of urban population increases and there is a strong effect on the growth of urban population.

1.5 Consequences of Rapid Urbanization

i) Due to rapid increase of population in the urban area, direct pressure is visible on the housing sector. As the poor cannot afford the average rent of the houses, they shift from central area to urban fringe area in substandard houses and they build their houses in the government owned vacant land, roadside spaces, and privately owned vacant land and create slums and squatter settlements.

ii) The density of population in the slums and squatter settlements is very high which create environmental problems. Transport is another big problem. The general passenger move from one place to another by rickshaws due to which unauthorized rickshaws are gradually increasing. Due to unplanned road system, poor traffic and road transport management system the citizen suffers from traffic jams.

iii) Due to rapid increase of urban population, labor force is also increasing rapidly, and as a result, unemployment and underemployment is a common feature. Thus a section of the urban low income group of people both male and female is unemployed.

iv) The slums and squatters settlements do not have health and sanitary facilities and the health condition of the dwellers is extremely poor, especially the children and female members who are suffering from diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, fever and various other diseases.

v) Due to continuous in-migration of the illiterate rural poor, the total numbers of the urban illiterates have gone up, and demand of educational institutions have increased and as a result, all existing educational institutions have become overcrowded.

vi) The utility services like sanitation, sewerage, drainage, water supply, garbage disposal etc. are highly unsatisfactory in most of the low income settlements. Although in big cities of the country garbage collection and disposal system prevails but the effort is not sufficient.

1.6 Rapid Urbanization and Need for Planning

Urbanization is an inevitable circumstance which has both positive and adverse impacts. As adverse impacts, poverty, gross inequality, high unemployment, under employment, overcrowded housing, proliferation of slums and squatter settlements, deteriorating environmental conditions, inadequate supply of drinking water, high incidence of diseases, overcrowding in schools and hospitals, overloading in public transport, increasing traffic jam, road accidents, violence, crimes and social tension etc. are the common features in our country.

In a rapidly urbanizing situation, physical expansion of urban areas cannot cope with the population increase. Urban land is a valuable asset and day by day land shortage is getting acute. Thus every parcel of land should be used in a planned manner and its optimum utilization must be ensured.

The secondary towns of the country are growing without any physical and development plan. Small scale industries are also developing in many of these secondary cities and market places. Only four metropolitan cities of the country, Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna and Rajshahi, have development authorities and their own master plan, but with the changing scenario the traditional approach of master plan is not effective for planned development.

Urban local government should be strengthened with appropriate power, resources, and technical capabilities, so that they can take responsibilities for a wide range of planning, infrastructure provision, and essential household delivery functions.